The Steve Kimock Band comes to The Blockley

Steve Kimock is one of those rare artists who, despite truly exceptional guitar playing, have been overlooked for too long. Self-taught Kimock, who is also skilled on the lap steel, Hawaiian guitar, arch top and octave mandolin, has quietly made a name for himself in music circles as a premier jam band musician.

Performing and recording with a variety of bands that have featured Grateful Dead alumni Bob Weir, Phil Lesh, Bill Kreutzman and Mickey Hart, as well as Mike Gordon of Phish, Pete Sears and Bruce Hornsby, Kimock is poised to finally gain the notoriety he deserves.

“There seems to be a general consensus by the portion of the general public that knows who I am at all that say, ‘oh yea, good work man, that’s good.’” says Kimock.

“It’s gratifying and humbling. I think what I’m getting from it is the energy and the motivation to work harder now, to bring out some different music, and to hopefully feel more worthy of that growing acceptance, which for me has been a really long trip.”

Currently fronting an impressive quartet including Wally Ingram (Sheryl Crow, David Lindley) on drums, Andy Hess (Gov’t Mule, Black Crowes) on bass and Rock and Roll Hall of Fame keyboardist Bernie Worrell (P-Funk, Talking Heads), Kimock is once again prepared to take his music in a new direction.

“From my side of the glass, playing with these guys is so hugely attractive,” says Kimock.

“So far, despite all the stuff that could possibly get in the way of a bunch of guys being together on stage, we get on stage laughing and we get off stage laughing. It’s really nice. We have a good time. I feel it really encourages the musical chemistry that we have. Our philosophy when we play a song is ‘always the same never the same way,’” added Kimock. “We’re always shooting for a certain quality of interaction and spontaneity to the thing. There are some marks you have to hit to do it at all, but the magic for me is in between those marks. It does a disservice to the music to think that there are not limits on it. In my harmony head the limits are what create the beauty in the thing. It’s not just random. It has to have a certain amount of flow in this direction and resistance in that direction.”

As a follow-up to his 2012 live concert EP, which is available as a free download by going to www.kimock.com, Kimock is gearing up to release his first studio album in years.

“We’re preparing right now to do some recording,” says Kimock. “I haven’t been in the studio in forever. We’re working on something that’s a little more of an enduring statement than just a gig. You really need to focus on the thing when you’re recording. Sometimes it’s hard to capture the live elements in the studio, but it depends on the process that is being used to record the music in the first place. Because this is kind of my show on some level, I should have enough of a hand in the process to avoid intruding on. I think there are plenty of ways to record that just suck the life out of any band. I’m not going to go there. I’m not worried about not being able to get to good musical energy. With any luck at all we’ll have something ready to go by the fall, for the fall tour. It’s going to be a lot of fun.”

Born and raised in Bethlehem, Kimock relocated to San Francisco in the mid-70s. Eager to explore a variety of music genres, he played in a variety of bands that ranged from folk rock to salsa.

In 1984, Kimock, along with Greg Anton and John Cipollina, co-founded the nationally recognized psychedelic rock band “Zero.” Their most successful album release, “Chance in a Million,” included songs written by Grateful Dead lyricist Robert Hunter. Through 1999, the band continued to perform and release albums under varied musical line-ups before breaking up. After returning to the Bethlehem area in 2000 to be closer to family, Kimock formed the first incarnation of his current musical endeavor, “The Steve Kimock Band.”

“I really love the fact that I still get to go out there and play for people and people get together and have a good time,” says Kimock. “The way we are in our culture right now — the way the economy is — things have kind of crashed. We’ve all suffered through the affects of endless war — here and there — war on people, war on drugs, and people shooting kids in schools. It’s depressing. We have this technology that kind of separates us. We’ve got emails and computers. Everybody is sitting at home and hiding.

“Live music and the community that goes along with that is healing. It’s the anti-terror. It’s the best thing that you can do for yourself. I want anybody that goes to my show or anybody else’s show to support live music and get out and get real. I think, more than anything else, that is going to pull us all through.”

The Steve Kimock Band, featuring Bernie Worrell, Andy Hess and Wally Ingram, perform at the Blockley, located at 3801 Chestnut St., Philadelphia, PA 19104, Friday March 8, 2013 at 8 p.m. Tickets are $17 and $20 and can be purchased by calling (215) 222-1234 or visiting www.theblockley.com. Must be 21 or over to gain admittance.